The present invention relates generally to free-standing, self-supporting containers which may be used to store and display various articles, particularly printed material. More specifically the present invention relates to a plastic fold-up display container which incorporates living hinges and a locked, snap-fit assembly of folded panels.
In the design of plastic containers that store, hold and/or display articles, such as printed material, there are several construction options which may be employed. One option is for the container to be molded, normally by an injection molding process, as a one-piece integral unit. One example of an injection molded structure is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,024, issued Jul. 24, 1990 to Meyer, referring to chart and file holder 20. Another option is to create the container by the assembly of individually molded pieces. The assembly technique may be by means of a snap-fit as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,024, referring to legs 66 and 67 which snap onto holder 60. Separate pieces may also be attached by fasteners or adhesive. A third option is to create the container from a one-piece form including hinged panels which are then folded up and snapped together in order to create a free-standing, self-supporting display container. The present invention is structural along the lines of this third construction option.
The advantages of the present invention include the molded efficiency of the flat form, unitary construction and the absence of several different, individualized component parts which would have to be separately fabricated and then assembled. The molded flat form of the present invention, prior to folding it up into the display container form, provides packaging, shipping and storage efficiencies over the corresponding inefficiencies of containers which may be initially molded or assembled in three-dimensional form. With the present invention, the end user performs the assembly steps and thus is able to both fold up the display container as well as unfold or knock it down for ease of storage at any time in the life cycle of the display container when it is not in use. The particular snap fit approach followed in the present invention, although intended to be permanent once it is folded up, is still reversible such that the folded-up form can be disassembled back to the flat form.
While other flat-form, fold-up plastic containers are known to exist, the present invention has certain advantages over these earlier designs. One such earlier design is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,819,792 issued Apr. 11, 1989 to Christian. This patent discloses a folding display for use as either a countertop or wall display. The structure begins as a single stamping and is then folded and the side edges of the various panels are interlocked in order to hold the folded form. Score lines are disposed between adjacent panels so that the bend between panels is clean and neat.
In Christian, the side panels are formed with rigid, planar extensions (i.e., feet) which are required to help support the display on a flat surface. When the option of wall mounting is desired, a different styled support is required as the feet cannot be hinged flat against the sides or back for any optional wall mounting using the same design. When wall mounting is desired, the pair of support feet must be replaced with a single, central foot which is described as being of the type common in desk calendars which can be made to bend out of the way for the desired wall mounting. This desk calendar type of foot is not believed to be as sturdy as the dual feet arrangement, but in Christian the dual feet cannot be interchangeably converted between a wall mounting configuration and a countertop support configuration.
In the present invention, feet are hinged to the rear panel and can be folded out for a countertop display or left in their originally molded orientation flush with the rear panel to enable a flush wall mounting configuration. In the present invention, the plastic material which is used has a short memory and thus when the support feet are hinged in a rearward direction, they will stay in that orientation without any need for further interlocking or holding structures. In Christian, the tilted orientation as illustrated for the countertop display is achieved by means of two cooperating design features. The first feature involves hinging the side panels to the front panel and the second feature involves angling the lower edge of the side panel and feet. This angled lower edge is such that in its flat form the included angle between the angled lower edge and the side edge of the base is greater than 90 degrees. In the present invention, the side panels are hinged to the base panel rather than to the front panel and thus cannot be used to create any tilt in the display container. As a consequence, the present invention uses two front feet which are cut in an offset fashion relative to the integral connecting hinge (i.e.. the fold line) between the front panel and base panel so as to extend below the base panel at the front edge.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,744,623 issued Jul. 10, 1973 to Woofter, a plastic self-locking caddy is disclosed. The caddy includes a base panel, a front panel, a pair of side Panels and a rear panel. The free edges of the side panels fit into channels in the rear panel and base panel and locking tabs fit into rear panel slots in order to hold the caddy in the closed and erected position. This design is not intended to be free-standing as there are no legs and the base is smaller than the top suggesting that any attempt to make the caddy free-standing would result in it tipping over or at least having an unacceptable level of stability.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,185,294 issued May 25, 1965 to Lustman an easel is disclosed which begins as a flat sheet of material and is folded closed much like a box is folded into a closed condition with the various flaps tucked into position between adjacent panels of material. In Lustman there are in fact flaps very similar to a box and these are folded and tucked into seams in order to create a display package which includes a pair of tabs 3 and 4 hinged to back portion 6 and which serve to maintain the easel in an upright position. In this design there are no snap-fit or interlocking features used to hold the form of the easel. This lack of interlocking features is made possible by the folded box-like configuration. What is sacrificed is the ability to provide an open-top container for the display of printed material or for holding discrete articles. Also lost by the specific structure of Lustman is any recognition of design changes to enable the easel to be wall mounted. The angled cut of side panels permits the easel to be positioned with a slight rearward incline. While this configuration may appear subtly minor, it is subtly important.
In the present invention there are front feet which provide for a slight elevation and thus a rearward incline for the present invention when it is mounted on a countertop or other horizontal support surface. In Lustman as in Christian the base panel is horizontal when the device is in the folded and erected position and thus if Lustman was configured to hold printed material by opening the top panel, the top edges of the printed material would be horizontal as is the case with Christian. In order to grasp one copy or one thickness of the printed material one would have to find a top edge and be able to pull that one copy forward in order to grasp the copy with the fingers. Single sheet printed material which is stacked together does not always present a free edge of the first copy apart from the remaining copies and thus use of the fingernail or a fanning motion of the multiple copies is needed in order to separate the first copy from the remainder. When all the top edges are horizontally flush, care must be taken to separate and select a single copy.
In contrast, in the present invention the base panel is inclined upwardly along its front edge and thus the top edges of the printed material are likewise inclined with the foremost or front copy slightly elevated from the second and third copies, and so forth. Consequently, the top edge of the forward most copy is slightly higher, relative to horizontal, and is more easily separated from the remaining copies. By means of a drawing motion of the fingers in a horizontal direction across the top, protruding edge of the printed material the first copy will more easily be selected by the customer or user. The present invention allows the printed material to have a forward protruding, slightly elevated front edge which makes selection of the material easier and reduces the risk that waste will result. Typically when a customer or user cannot select one copy from the remainder they will take two or three copies and those extra copies are simply thrown away resulting in waste and inefficiency. In the present invention the first copy is able to pivot forward slightly separating itself from the remainder without any bending or creasing and without having to fan the multiple copies in order to separate one from the remainder.
Another advantage of the angled or inclined floor of the base panel in the present invention is that the printed material will naturally lay back against the rear panel. Consequently, as the quantity of copies decreases the remaining stack of copies will lay neatly against the back panel due to this incline rather than possibly leaning forward and with time sagging or drooping over the front edge of the display. In displays of this type, it is important that the printed material be visible so that the person selecting a copy will be able to choose from different offerings. If the material is supported on a horizontal base surface, the front copies could easily lean forward as the quantity is reduced. If the copies droop or sag forward so that their content cannot be visually reviewed, the printed material which one wishes to distribute may simply not be as readily selected. This problem is eliminated by the specific design of the present invention.